Random stuff about Wellington since 2005

BATS Theatre celebrates 21 years of STAB annual commissions with a production of The Rime of the Modern Mariner by The PlayGround Collective. In this adaptation “the Mariner sets out to sea to catch the ultimate prize, but when he carelessly fells an albatross a curse befalls his ship. Stranded in the north Pacific Gyre […]

Two shows featuring asshole* men. What are the odds? The odds are good and pretty entertaining. The Biggest by Jamie McCaskill Stu has had a terrible accident, writing off the car and the boat. His mates – Walter, Pat, and Mick – decide to enter a fishing competition to win him a new boat. Local […]

Two plays on now in Wellington – one a story pre-conception, the other a story post-death. Both are very good. Review: Lungs A couple are thinking about having a child. They’re pretty sure they’re good people but a whole new person is a pretty big responsibility. What about climate change? What about their carbon footprint? […]

James Smith Market’s Float Well offers submersion into a space that’s been a site for relaxation, meditation, and consciousness-experimentation throughout the 20th Century. The Wellingtonista takes a dip. In Ken Russell’s barmy 1980 sci-fi thriller Altered States, William Hurt plays a psychologist whose hunger for third-eye-candy takes him on drug trips, indigenous vision-quests, and ultimately into the […]

The Wellingtonista got invited along to try out some of the dishes and have a beer at the Giddy-Up Mussel Bar, tucked away on Manners Street opposite Arty Bees bookshop. It sounded like a nice place to try out for a Friday evening dinner, so I took up the invitation and went there with my […]

PlatonicRomantic Featuring lead vocalist Moana Ete, and accompanied by the rhythm section of Slade Butler and Marcus Gurtner A Girl Named Mo debuted ‘Mud & Stardust‘ during Fly my Pretties’ August shows. A cool mix of R&B + electronic and one of the prettiest songs I’ve listened to for a while. Each performance will be […]

The New Zealand Improv Festival is at BATS Theatre all this week. See some of the country’s best practitioners and companies in unscripted theatre that’s devised before your face. That’s right – no scripts, no set plays. Here’s how it works – each show will have a frame for the show the improvisers will create. […]

Performer Hayley Sproull tells her story of a “white wahine’s deeply disengaged bicultural heritage”. Recognising that her Nana’s death meant a loss of connection to her Māori heritage this is a “comedic exploration of her embarrassed ignorance.” (Quotes from the programme.) An elegant set in white pegboard – on one side a whare shape, on […]

Alec and Mary McPherson run a little cafe in scenic New Zealand called House of Mince. Mary is a little tired of the monotony of their life but she’s happy enough. Then a man known as Donkey Boy visits London-based crime lord Vic Snow, and Alec and Mary’s lives won’t be the same. Written by […]

Back in August, our editor Jo attended the Bolton Hotel‘s Wellington on a Plate event and enjoyed it mightily. In the ensuing interplay on Twitter, the Hotel invited one of us to stay the night so that we could experience their hospitality more fully. I quickly took up the offer on the behalf of the […]